How I Understood and Recovered from Borderline Personality Disorder

Longitudinal Studies of BPD Recovery

Because I do not think that BPD is a valid object of scientific inquiry, I haven’t covered many empirical studies documenting BPD recovery. However, such studies can be encouraging if the diagnosis aspect is not taken too literally and concretely. Here are two studies I have reviewed, with plans to do more in the future:

#22: Proof That Borderlines Are Motivated for Psychotherapy and Can Fully Recover– This article covers two studies:
1) Josephine Giesen-Bloo’s randomized trial of twice-weekly, three-year long psychotherapy for 88 people diagnosed as BPD, in which a majority fully recovered to function well and no longer be diagnosable with BPD.
2) Mary Zanarini’s 10-year longitudinal study of about 300 people diagnosed as BPD, in which it was shown that even without intensive psychotherapy, the large majority improved to the point at which they were no longer diagnosable as borderline. These improved people had much fewer symptoms, functionedwell in a job, and had meaningful interpersonal relationships.